Additional Israeli Ground Forces Enter Lebanon
July 24, 2006
Damage from an Israeli air strike in southern Beirut on July 23 (epa)
Israel Radio reported that the forces were moving on the town of Bint Jbail in southern Lebanon, known as a stronghold of Hizballah militants, after a heavy overnight artillery barrage in the area.
Israeli Brigadier General Alon Friedman said military operations will continue at least another 10 days.
Israeli warplanes pounded south Lebanon in the early hours of July 24, wounding six people, including one child, at a Palestinian refugee camp in the port city of Tyre.
The Israeli Army also said it had seized two Hizballah guerrillas during fighting in the village of Maroun al-Ras in southern Lebanon.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called for an urgent cease-fire between Israel and Hizballah but added that conditions had to be right. Rice spoke while traveling to the region. Her first stop is Israel.
Saudi Arabia has asked the United States to mediate to stop the mounting deaths in Lebanon.
More than 400 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since fighting erupted on July 12.
(AP, Reuters)